will not negotiate with congressional republicans on raising the nation's debt ceiling. good evening. i'm jeffrey brown. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we'll examine what the president said about tackling the government deficit and reducing gun violence. >> brown: then, we turn to the west african nation of mali, where french troops have launched air strikes on islamic militants. three jihaddist groups now deemed a clear and present danger to the capital and beyond, a threat to africa and europe. >> woodruff: margaret warner has the story of the suicide of a young internet wizard who was facing federal charges for hacking and distributing online data he thought should be made public. >> brown: ray suarez updates the changes in cuba, where travel restrictions were eased today for citizens hoping to come and go. >> it is still one of the most repressive places in terms of its human rights record but we welcome any liberalization. we hope that will turn out to be one such. >> woodruff: and with rehearsals already under way for next week's inaugural ceremoni

: the questions were dominated by the looming debt ceiling fight. the president sternly warned republicans not to balk at raising the nation's borrowing limit. >> they will not collect a ransom in exchange for not crashing the american economy. the financial well being of the american people is not leverage to be used. the full faith and credit of the united states of america is not a bargaining chip. and they better choose quickly because time is running short. >> brown: congress has until march to raise the debt ceiling and prevent a government default. most republicans have insisted that with the government facing another trillion dollar deficit this year, any increase in borrowing authority must be tied to cuts in spending. the president flatly disagreed. >> i want to be clear about this. the debt ceiling is not a question of authorizing more spending. so while i'm willing to compromise and find common ground over how to reduce our deficits, america cannot afford another debate with this congress about whether or not they should pay the bills they've already racked up. >> b